by Research Team | Aug 12, 2016 | Spotlight
Google Fiber has been creating ultra fast internet to homes and businesses for years. Now a physical connection, Google Fiber is looking to make its infrastructure completely wireless in the near future. A recent filing with the FCC shows that Google is looking to test out new ways to bring this ultra fast internet to people everywhere, wirelessly.
Key Takeaways:
- A new FCC filing by Alphabet, Google’s parent company, laid out the Cupertino, California-based company’s plan to begin testing internet-disseminating radios in regions around the country.
- Google’s been testing wireless technology in Kansas City, the first city to receive Fiber service, for the past several weeks, the documents revealed.
- At Alphabet’s quarterly shareholder meeting in June, Chairman Eric Schmidt spoke about the company’s exploratory steps toward fiber-optic alternatives.
“But Google faces an uphill technological climb. Its wireless choice of medium in question, millimeter wave technology, is limited in range and affected by both inclement weather and physical obstacles.”
Learn more here:
by Research Team | Aug 11, 2016 | Spotlight
You’ve just finished up an important email and then get stuck on the most important part – a catchy subject line that will get it read. Not hard to imagine, right? We’ve all been there. This article gives great examples of headlines that will get the job done right. It can be tricky, but with these tips, such as why they should open the email, answers to questions they have, and the personal connection the person may have with you, your next email will fly into the inbox with a neon sign that says “open me”.
Key Takeaways:
- The focus of the subject line is too broad and focuses on the wrong goal. Your goal should simply be about getting a response, not to close a deal.
- You’re sending your emails at the wrong time. Recent data revealed that the worst days for open rates are Monday and Tuesday, and the best email send days are Saturday and Sunday.
- Sending your emails with a generic address. To boost open rate, send your emails as a real person, not a business account or company name.
“You’re sending your emails at the wrong time. Recent data revealed that the worst days for open rates are Monday and Tuesday, and the best email send days are Saturday and Sunday.”
Learn more here:
by Jeane Sumner | Jul 20, 2016 | Spotlight
If you’re attending a GoTo Webinar and are uncertain if your computer has the needed requirements, you can visit their site to run a test — before your webinar time — to be sure you’re ready. Especially handy if you’ve been invited to attend a conference call webinar.
Try a test session: To get ready
by Jeane Sumner | Nov 19, 2012 | Spotlight
Are you thinking about getting into eCommerce? Does the idea of working in your jammies and fuzzy slippers really appeal to you? It may be just the thing for you, but there’s one dirty little secret that you just need to know, and it can make all the difference.
If you want to sell products, you already know that you have to:
- sell something that people want to buy online
- and sell it at a price they are willing to pay
But the dirty little secret of selling successfully on the web is to sell things they can’t easily get other places online.
This is at the heart of my personal success online.
Beware of the “Get Rich Online” Offers
There are hundreds, possibly thousands of websites out there that say that you, too, “can be rich working 2 hours a day from home . . . ” and some of them are telling the truth, but most of them are selling you into a bigger package, or better yet, into selling their “wholesale” products online, and they’ll even provide a website for you. STOP RIGHT THERE.
Maybe 10 years ago this was a better plan, and an easy way for folks to get started, but now, in my experienced eCommerce opinion, it’s the wrong path.
I don’t want to single out any particular company, because that wouldn’t be fair, but I will show you an example of a product that they say would be easy to sell. For home parties, or retail stores, this may be a great supplier. But one the web, not so much.
Take this Pizza Stone above , the site says if you sell it at retail you can make $15 for a sales. And though I didn’t dig deeper on this site, I bet they offer to “dropship” it too, for a small fee.
A little image researching on Google and I found out this product is called a:
Good Cook 4301 14.75 Inch Pizza Stone with Rack.
A few quick clicks into Google, and this exact item is listed on Amazon and 192,000 other websites for as low as $9.46. So how do you compete and make a profit like that? The answer is, “you don’t.”
Can you really make money online?
The answer is “you can,” and all you have to do is think differently. A lot differently. Instead of looking for the easy button, invest your time in and focus on how to build a real, sustainable business.
Look for products that are wanted, but perhaps not readily available. Avoid being the “only one” selling this “contraption” because if no one else is selling anything like it, there may not be a market for it. Own the manufacturing channel if you can, and if you can’t, get creative. One way we did this was in the waterproof headphones niche was by custom branding an existing product.
In early 2003, as iPods and mp3 players were becoming more popular, swimmers wanted to take them in the pool, and while we had waterproof cases that could do just that, there were simply no broadly marketed waterproof headphones.
As a small company we didn’t have the money for research and development, but we did have the credit to take a risk. We approached one of our manufacturers and had them brand their headphones with our logo and in the newly famous “arctic white” color, at first 1,000 pairs, and when they sold out, 5,000 more. We weren’t first to market with a waterproof headphones, and there were better brands on the market, we were just one of the first to couple affordable waterproof headphones with an ‘ipod waterproof case’ to make a swimming solution.
By “owning” the space, customers were not able to buy this solution from anywhere else, because it was the only brand on the market like it.
It’s worth noting that once they were popularized, other manufacturers started making higher end products that were competitively priced and they were spending hundreds of thousands on marketing, research, and development, so we exited the manufacturing position and moved on to something else.
It’s almost like investing in the stock market, getting in when the timing is right, and getting out with the most cash possible.
Think about the product or niche that you want to sell into, how can you own it as your own? And if you can’t, how might you position yourself as the market leader? If you can solve that you can make an ecommerce business work.
by Jeane Sumner | Nov 17, 2012 | Spotlight
If this is your first time reading any of my posts, you may already be put off and ready to leave, but if you want the truth about online marketing, you should probably read a little further.
Who am I? I am an experienced online marketer, working for more than 15 years in the online marketing space, and it’s time someone told you the truth, you can’t make money in online marketing. Marketing, online or offline doesn’t generate money, it generates action. Action to visit a store, action to visit a website, action to click a button. But that ACTION is not what generates money online. Its what happens on the other side of that action that may or may not “make money.” If you’re still reading this, perhaps I’ve piqued your curiousity more than just a little, good, keep reading.
For years I’ve had people ask me how they can make money online. And for years I’ve tried to explain to them what I am about to explain to you. The idea of making money online is like assuming you’ll make money just by opening a storefront. It’s just not true. If you really do want to make money online and you have some guts, determination and have a belly for a little risk. Rest assured there are dozens of ways that you can USE online marketing to grow a business that makes money, but the devil is in the details.
Doesn’t that sound a little more realistic, using marketing to grow a business instead of to “make money”. In this article lets look at 3 things you really need to know before you try to dive in to “making money online”.
- Can you afford to go into business?
- Do you have a business plan?
- How long can you survive without making a profit?
Lets look at these one-by-one:
Can you afford to go into business?
The barrier to entry in starting an online business seems pretty low, until its time to really get down to business. You have to evaluate how much capital you can afford to invest and possible lose before you get started. “LOSE?” I can already hear you moaning, YUP, LOSE. If 3 out of 5 traditional businesses fail where there is a greater barrier to entry, I would imagine the statistics are even higher for online businesses.
Most of the folks who come to me wanting to start an online business truly can’t afford the financial risk of investing $500 let alone the $5,000 I think you should have to get started. Why $5,000 … because now you’ve got some skin in the game, If you toss $500 at it and it fails, you can let it go without much heartache. If $5,000 is online line you’re more likely to work your ass off to make it work. The SBA has some internet start up recommendations that are worth reading.
Do you have a business plan?
The internet is still the wild, wild west in some ways and there are always some banditos looking to take your money. Before you spend one single dime on the business, sit down and write a business plan. Treat this like a real business. Be smart and if you are not prepared to write a business plan, then stop wasting your time and putting yourself and your family at risk.
How long can you survive without making a profit?
Hooray, if you’ve made it this far, then my antics haven’t been able to scare you away. Good. Now’s the hardest question of all, “How long can you survive without making a profit?” Just like a traditional business, you’ll have monthly costs, probably unexpected expenses, and lower sales than you planned for. How many months can you (and your spouse) tolerate being in business without making any profits? This may come as a shock to you, but not all businesses online make money from day one. And some, never. How long can you stay in the game? A good way to find out is to calculate a break even analysis.
By now you should have a little more fear in your idea of starting an online business, and that’s good. Let that fear drive you to making great decisions and implementing a business someone will want to do business with. Sit down and work out a real plan. It doesn’t have to be perfect and it doesn’t have to be long, it’s just the first step in moving toward “making money online”. And then come back and read more of my blog posts and snarky comments about doing business online.
